European Peace Institute / News

Political map of Mali (Click for full graphic)

Violence associated with terrorist and extremist groups in Mali (Jan. 2017-Sept. 2018)(Click for full graphic)

In the non-permissive environments where they are often deployed, UN peace operations need to be increasingly creative to implement their mandate to protect civilians. They face particularly acute challenges in contexts marked by violent extremism, such as Mali, where attacks by terrorist groups have greatly constrained the capacity of peacekeepers to protect local populations.

This paper explores the operational challenges that the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) faces in implementing its protection mandate. It analyzes protection threats related to violent extremism in Mali and explores the protection strategy, tools, and activities developed by the UN mission to address those threats. It highlights some of the practical constraints of operating in a hostile environment and added complications related to the mission’s proximity to non-UN counterterrorism forces.

The Malian case demonstrates that each peacekeeping theater needs to be its own laboratory for POC and that approaches, tools, and mechanisms are not directly replicable from one UN mission to another. The report makes three recommendations to improve the delivery of MINUSMA’s protection mandate:

1. Explore the full spectrum of military, police, and civilian tools;
2. Ensure the independence of MINUSMA’s POC activities from counterterrorism agendas; and
3. Design and articulate a political strategy that prioritizes POC.

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On October 25th, IPI together with the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research and the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations cohosted an evening panel discussion on the role of conventional arms control in preventing conflicts and building peace.

Poor regulation of arms and ammunition is a key enabler of conflict and a means of sustaining it. Peace and sustainable development cannot be achieved without effective conventional arms control. Despite this, conventional arms control is rarely integrated into conflict prevention thinking and action. The Secretary-General’s Agenda for Disarmament calls for an examination of how disarmament and arms control can contribute to conflict prevention.

This event, held during the opening week of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly’s Committee on Disarmament, aims to improve understanding of the roles and impact of conventional arms in preventing and managing conflicts, as well as to examine approaches to better identify, utilize, and integrate conventional arms control measures and tools to sustain peace.

Opening remarks:
H.E. Mr. Yasuhisa Kawamura, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Deputy Representative of Japan to the United Nations​
H.E. Mr. Aidan Liddle, UK Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva
Dr. Renata Dwan, Director, United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research

Speakers:
Ms. Alexandra Fong, Senior Political Affairs Officer, UN Department of Political Affairs
Mr. Thomas Kontogeorgos, Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Service, UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations
Mr. Himayu Shiotani, Programme Lead, Conventional Arms Programme, UNIDIR
Dr. Youssef Mahmoud, Senior Adviser, IPI
Moderator:
Mr. Jake Sherman, Director of the Brian Urquhart Center for Peace Operations, IPI

Engaging non-state armed groups (NSAGs) is an essential tool for the protection of civilians (POC), a priority mandate and core objective for peace operations. Beyond the use of force to prevent or stop armed groups from threatening local populations, multidimensional missions can use a wide range of unarmed strategies, such as dialogue and engagement, to counter hostilities from non-state actors.

This paper looks at how, when, and why UN missions engage with NSAGs. It gives an overview of current practice, drawing on the experiences of the missions in Afghanistan, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Mali. It then examines the risks of engaging NSAGs and how POC mandates can help missions navigate these risks. Finally, it looks at peace operations’ unique capacities to engage with NSAGs and how best to leverage them.

Civilian protection is ever more urgent, and engaging NSAGs is crucial to this work. A pragmatic approach, anchored in POC considerations, can help guide missions through potentially polarizing debates and safeguard UN principles while simultaneously allowing them to adapt more effectively to the challenges they face.

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The year 2020 will mark the 20th anniversary of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security (WPS). Despite two decades of WPS policy development and commitments, women’s meaningful participation at all decision-making levels lags due to structural barriers, lack of access to political arenas, and even threats to women who attempt to participate in these processes. In efforts to build and sustain peace, there remains a widespread neglect for the expertise of local-level women peacebuilders, and formal peacemaking efforts continue to be resistant to women’s meaningful participation and to women’s rights.

To address these barriers, governments and the UN have recently been taking steps at the national and regional levels on women’s leadership, including by launching networks of women mediators and leaders. An October 24th evening reception at IPI brought together researchers, policy makers, and practitioners to discuss the potential of the WPS agenda, as well as existing challenges and ways to address them.

The event was co-hosted with the Permanent Mission of Norway to the UN, the Crisis Management Initiative (CMI), and the Inclusive Peace & Transition Initiative (IPTI). It drew on the insights of participating women peacebuilders, and IPTI and IPI research. The discussion shed light on various initiatives at the national, regional, and international levels, and surfaced questions and issues for member states, the UN, and NGOs to consider as their work continues.

In opening remarks, Adam Lupel, IPI Vice President, noted that “women must be at the center of all peace efforts at large. We must recognize that this is not just a matter of developing policy and making formal commitments; it is about recognizing the structural barriers to participation and about taking action to remove them.”

Despite the remaining barriers to achieving the WPS agenda by 2020, Mari Skåre, Deputy Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Norway to the UN, highlighted the importance of the progress the agenda had made so far. “Yes, there remain real hindrances for women’s participation, and yes, discrimination against women is one of the key hindrances we need to tackle,” she said. “I would like to say to you that we are transforming our societies: it’s not a matter of when or if we are doing it; we are doing it now. We see progress as a result of this work.” She emphasized that, “We need your leadership, your competence, to keep us accountable.”

Speaking from experience, Cathérine Samba-Panza, Co-Chair of the Network of African Women in Conflict Prevention and Mediation (FemWise), and the former president of the Central African Republic, said that when “faced with conflict, women are indeed in the first line.” She continued, stating that women are often “the first victims, and they know all the challenges, difficulties, and implications of the conflict.” But when it comes time for peace talks, and you look at the table, “They are not there.”

“Everywhere around the world, women have decided that they will no longer stay at this level as victims, they want to be around the table,” she said. “It’s not just about wanting to be at the table but wanting to bring solutions; and their voice is not heard; it is not taken into account.”

She said that in her country, “Women are brought to speak with armed groups to see what their grievances are and to try to address them. But when we arrive at the moment of peace talks, the women are no longer present.” She said that among political figures, armed groups, and militia leaders, she saw no women.

Norwegian Major General Kristin Lund, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision, made reference to the value of networks of women mediators, saying that “the military are often the first responders, and it’s a tool that I think [mediator networks are] so important…That’s why I think education of our military leaders is very important.”

She reflected on her experience as the first female Force Commander of a UN peacekeeping operation. “I’ve been fighting all my life to go through that glass ceiling and when you get through, you have to make sure you inspire other women,” she said. “Now when I travel, gender is on the agenda.”

Thania Paffenholz, Director of the Inclusive Peace & Transition Initiative, asked about “how we can use our roles as women and learn in a positive transformative way.” She made note of the limitations of using quotas. “If you put a quota, you will not necessarily get feminists in,” she said, “There’s a danger that we are just changing the players and not the game. If we just add women and the system doesn’t change, we will not change.”

Moderator and IPI Research Fellow Sarah Taylor concluded by echoing a point from the day’s meeting of women mediators: “Adding women to a broken process does not fix a broken process,” she said. “The point is to try to fix the system and not to fix the women.”

On Friday, October 26th, IPI together with the Directorate General for International Relations and Strategy (DGRIS) of the French Ministry of Defense and the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands are cohosting a seminar on “Protecting Civilians and Managing Threats: Non-state Armed Groups, Violent Extremism, and the Role of UN Peace Operations.”

Remarks will begin at 10:15am EST / 7:15am PST

This seminar will explore difficulties faced by UN peace operations to protect civilians in complex environments, where creative solutions are needed to address non-state armed groups and violent extremism. It will provide the opportunity to present and discuss two IPI policy papers focusing on “engaging armed groups for the protection of civilians” and “protecting civilians in contexts of violent extremism and counter-terrorism.” Both papers will be published in October as part of IPI’s Protection of Civilians project.

Welcome Remarks
Dr. Adam Lupel, Vice-President, International Peace Institute
Gen. Thierry Lion, Senior Military Advisor, Permanent Mission of France to the United Nations
Rear Admiral (LH) Peter van den Berg, Senior Military Advisor, Permanent Mission of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the UN

Opening Remarks
Mr. David Haeri, Director, Division of Policy, Evaluation and Training (DPET), UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations/Department of Field Support TBC

Session 1: Engaging with armed groups for the Protection of Civilians

Chair:
Dr. Youssef Mahmoud, Senior advisor, International Peace Institute

Speakers:
Mr. Ralph Mamiya, Non-resident Advisor, International Peace Institute, Former Protection of Civilians Team Leader, UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations/Department of Field Support
Ms. Naomi Miyashita, Policy Planning Team Leader, Division of Policy, Evaluation and Training (DPET), UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations
Ms. Agnes Coutou, Peacekeeping and Protection Advisor, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
Dr. Michael Semple, Practitioner Chair, Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice, Professor, Queens’ University Belfast
Mr. Adam Day, Head of Programmes, United Nations University – Centre for Policy Research

Keynote speaker:
Mr. Jack Christofides, Africa II Division, UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations

Session 2: Protection of Civilians in Contexts of Violent Extremism: the case of Mali

Chair:
Mr. Jake Sherman, Director of the Center for Peace Operations, International Peace Institute

Speakers:
Dr. Namie Di Razza, Research Fellow, International Peace Institute
Mr. Samuel Gahigi, Mali Integrated Operational Team Leader, UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations
Dr. Alpha Oumar Ba-Konaré, Independent Expert, National Institute for Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO Paris)
Dr. Marie-Joëlle Zahar, Non-resident Senior Fellow, International Peace Institute, Professor, University of Montreal
Ms. Chloe Marnay-Baszanger, Peace Missions Support Section, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Closing Remarks
Mr. Olivier Landour, Directorate general for International Relations and Strategy (DGRIS), French Ministry of Armed Forces (TBC)
Mr. Jake Sherman, Director, Brian Urquhart Center for Peace Operations, International Peace Institute

On October 18th, IPI together with the School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University cohosted a Distinguished Author Series event, featuring David E. Sanger, New York Times National Security Correspondent and author of The Perfect Weapon: War, Sabotage and Fear in the Cyber Age. The conversation was moderated by IPI Senior Adviser for External Relations Warren Hoge.

The Perfect Weapon is the startling inside story of how the rise of cyber weapons in all their forms – from attacks on electric grids to attacks on electoral systems – has transformed geopolitics like nothing since the invention of the atomic bomb. Cheap to acquire, easy to deny, usable for everything from crippling infrastructure to sowing discord and doubt, cyber is now the weapon of choice for American presidents, North Korean dictators, Iranian mullahs, and Kremlin officials. Even though the US has built up a powerful new Cyber Command, it has no doctrine for how to use it. When under attack—by Russia, China, or even Iran and North Korea—the government has often been paralyzed, unable to use cyber weapons because America’s voting system, its electrical system, and even routers in citizens’ homes have been infiltrated by foreign hackers. Deterring cyber attacks is far more complex than the Cold War effort to deter nuclear weapons, and in the end, a political solution, akin to the Geneva Conventions, may be needed if we are to avoid an era of constantly escalating cyber conflict.

In the past year, overall levels of violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) have decreased, and the UN mission (MINUSCA) has helped stabilize key areas through comprehensive, multidimensional efforts at the local level. Nevertheless, violence against civilians continues, attacks on humanitarian workers have increased, and national security forces lack the capacity to maintain security. Moreover, the various ongoing dialogue processes are uncoordinated and do not address critical questions.

In this context, the International Peace Institute (IPI), the Stimson Center, and Security Council Report organized a workshop on September 14, 2018, to discuss MINUSCA’s mandate and political strategy. This workshop offered a platform for member states and UN actors to develop a shared understanding and common strategic assessment of the situation in CAR. The discussion was intended to help the Security Council make informed decisions with respect to the strategic orientation, prioritization, and sequencing of the mission’s mandate ahead of its renewal in November 2018.

Participants considered MINUSCA to be among the most adaptive to demanding conditions and operational constraints. But despite these achievements, MINUSCA faces serious challenges to consolidating its gains and advancing a sustainable political process. Participants recommended that the Security Council adapt MINUSCA’s mandate to give the mission a stronger political role, broaden collective support for CAR’s security forces, and support processes that promote an inclusive national identity and representative state institutions.

On October 17th, IPI hosted a policy forum event entitled, “Safeguarding Medical Care and Humanitarian Action in the UN Counterterrorism Framework.”

Following UN Security Council Resolution 1371 (2001), the UN and its member states have developed what can be described as an international counterterrorism regime composed of laws, standards, rules, policies, and practices. However, there is growing evidence that the design and implementation of counterterrorism measures can adversely impact the provision of medical care and the conduct of principled humanitarian action in armed conflict. Whether inadvertently or not, these measures have impeded, and at times prevented, the provision of essential and lifesaving aid. This runs counter to the obligation under international humanitarian law to provide and grant access to medical assistance and impartial humanitarian aid, which needs to be taken into account in the design and implementation of counterterrorism laws and policies.

This enhanced awareness of how counterterrorism measures and their implementation may adversely impact the delivery of impartial humanitarian assistance in armed conflict zones, in particular looking at the current UN counterterrorism framework. This event also launched IPI’s report, “Safeguarding Medical Care and Humanitarian Action in the UN Counterterrorism Framework” and disseminated key findings from the research. Finally, it discussed recommendations and explored ways forward to help mitigate tensions between counterterrorism and humanitarian imperatives.

Opening remarks:
H.E. Mr. Jürg Lauber, Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations

Speakers:
Ms. Alice Debarre, Policy Analyst, IPI
Mr. Christopher Harland, Deputy Permanent Observer and Legal Adviser, International Committee of the Red Cross Delegation to the United Nations
Dr. Agnès Callamard, Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions
Mr. Edward J. Flynn, Senior Human Rights Officer, United Nations Security Council, Counter-Terrorism Executive Directorate
Mr. Aurelien Buffler, Head of the Policy Advice and Planning Section, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs

Moderator:
Dr. Adam Lupel, Vice President, IPI

On October 11th, IPI hosted the latest event in its series featuring United Nations Humanitarian Coordinators and other senior humanitarian leaders from the field. This discussion with Mr. Philippe Lazzarini, United Nations Deputy Special Coordinator, Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon, focused on the latest developments in Lebanon including the humanitarian and the economic situation. This event also addressed the impact that recent regional developments—including the crisis in Syria—have had on Lebanon, and the UN’s strategies for coping with an increasingly protracted refugee crisis.

Since the beginning of the conflict in Syria, Lebanon has seen a huge influx of Syrian refugees, adding to the existing population of Palestinian refugees in the country. This influx puts an increasing strain on the country’s public services. Additionally, Lebanon is still recovering from the consequences of its own civil war, which ended in 1990, and from the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah. While promoting durable solutions in Lebanon is essential, the battle of Idlib in northern Syria has placed renewed attention on the conflict occurring next door, the regional impact of human suffering, and the immediate needs for protection, relief, and access to basic services.

This event raised awareness of the challenges faced by the UN and other humanitarian actors in Lebanon in delivering a multifaceted range of interventions, from emergency aid to development assistance. It shed light on how the UN can better put the humanitarian-development nexus into practice in support of refugees, displaced people, host communities, and other vulnerable groups.

Speaker:
Mr. Philippe Lazzarini, United Nations Deputy Special Coordinator, Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator for Lebanon

Moderator:
Dr. Adam Lupel, Vice President, IPI

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Up to four in five fragile and conflict-affected states are unable to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), according to a new report by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) and International Rescue Committee (IRC). David Miliband, President and CEO of the IRC, said that the SDG drive to end poverty is “off-track” because the solutions to tackle it have been designed for stable states, whereas these programs are not equally suited to fragile and conflict-affected states.

The organizations responsible for the report, together with British Filmmaker Richard Curtis, an SDG Advocate, co-sponsored a September 27th reception at IPI. The event brought together members of civil society, international government actors, and representatives of the the private sector for a screening of Mr. Curtis’ short film, created with the IRC to raise awareness for and promote action towards achievement of the SDGs.

In opening remarks, IPI President Terje Rød-Larsen said that no single actor alone can provide the necessary support to people in countries experiencing crises and highlighted the benefits of partnership that draws on the insight of multilateral actors, the capacity of national governments, along with the innovation of the private sector.

Mr. Miliband argued that it is possible to combine “serious issues and serious speakers” with “dynamism,” through platforms such as film. Over the next year, world leaders will gather to audit processes over SDGs, and he said, “We need to make sure they prioritize people in conflict situations,” and “make sure we drive the innovation to reach these people.”

One way forward, Edna Adan Ismail, former Foreign Minister of Somaliland, recommended, is through youth empowerment projects. “If children don’t have something to live for, if young people don’t have a means to develop their energies, ambitions, skills, and contribute to the development of a nation, we could also be facing problems,” she said. Citing Somaliland’s experience with its diaspora, she said, “Somaliland mastered the process of self-help in Africa.” Somaliland’s resilience, she suggested, could provide lessons for achieving the SDGs.

Mr. Curtis’ film, Our Future Under Fire, followed. The film, which he planned to show “wherever possible,” conveyed the message that the SDGs contain the answers to the “biggest crises we are dealing with,” he said.

The SDGs are also a “massive opportunity” for the private sector, said Rebecca Marmot, Global Vice President, Partnerships and Advocacy, at Unilever, next to take the stage. She argued that representation in media helps to make the goals relatable to “everyday problems” on the ground. We need to integrate these messages like we do consumer campaigns, she said, and to ask, “What kind of products and services do the private sector have that can help refugees?” One way, she said, is to “change the perception of refugees, try to provide them with opportunities, and try to give them free movement.”

Ed Skyler, Executive Vice President of Citigroup, said that Citi stands behind the SDGs as “worthy projects,” and that through his company’s business operations he strives to achieve gender equality, and to work on further ways that the private sector can help.

Elizabeth Stuart, Head of Growth, Poverty, and Inequality at ODI, elaborated on the findings of the joint ODI-IRC report. This, she said, would be the start of continuing partnership. But she made note of the fact that “at a time when largely things are getting better, things are getting much worse in fragile and conflict-affected states.” One striking example from the report was of a primary school in South Sudan, where 5,000 children were enrolled in a school with only 38 teachers, a 1:138 ratio. To address what needs to be done, she called for a high-level panel; flexible, long-term aid; and thorough understanding of and support to the SDGs.

Echoing the collective call to action, Sarah McGrath, Director of UN and International Financial Institutions in the Development Cooperation and Africa Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Ireland, shared Ireland’s vision for the SDGs. In her country, she said, “commitment to leave no one behind must reach the furthest behind first.”

At a time when multilateralism has been called into question by authoritarian actors on the global stage, “we must not dismiss our belief in collective action,” she asserted. In the Irish mission, “hope underpinned our determination to change things for the better,” she said, and the SDGs are the “best way” to enact that hope and to “show that we can succeed.”

On September 26th, IPI in partnership with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and the International Civil Society Action Network cohosted an event entitled “Women Mediators: Connecting Local and Global Peacebuilders”

Women activists and women’s organizations frequently contribute to conflict resolution and peacebuilding at the local level. However, they continue to be significantly underrepresented in formal peace processes. In fact, women made up just 2 percent of mediators in major peace processes from 1990 to 2017.

To stop violence and foster sustainable peace, global and regional efforts in support of peace must be linked to the locally rooted peace and mediation efforts of community peacemakers, particularly women. Local actors often have significant insight into conflict drivers and conflict solutions. In peace efforts at all levels, from the grassroots to the international, women in particular often have different experiences of conflict and different insights. They also often bring solutions and are able to foster trust and identify the steps needed to ensure the inclusion of all affected—women, men, boys, and girls. But these women often have even less access to formal processes than their male colleagues, as the evidence reflects.

The importance of civil society in sustaining peace is also evident in empirical research. Since the introduction of UN Security Council 1325 in 2000, the women, peace, and security agenda has developed through a collaboration among civil society, the UN, and governments. While the paradigm has been slow to shift, there is growing momentum and support for the full participation of women peacebuilders as mediators and negotiators in peace processes.

Opening Remarks:
Mr. Terje Rød-Larsen, President, International Peace Institute

Speakers:
H.E. Mrs. Adela Raz, Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
H.E. Ms. Ine Eriksen Søreide, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Norway
Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, Minister of State for the Commonwealth and the UN at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, UK
H.E. Ms. Ana Maria Menéndez, Senior Adviser of the Secretary-General on Policy, United Nations
Ms. Rajaa Altalli, Co-Director of Center for Civil Society and Democracy CCSD
Ms. Fatima Abo Alasrar, Senior Analyst for the Arabia Foundation

Moderator:
Ms. Sanam Naraghi-Anderlini, Founder and Executive Director, ICAN

 

While there has been an increase in security responses to violent extremism in the Sahel-Sahara, these responses have shown their limits. At the same time, successful regional experiences building resilience and proposing concrete and credible alternatives to violence remain understudied and undervalued.

To promote regional conversations around such experiences, the International Peace Institute (IPI), the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, and the African Union’s African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism co-organized a regional seminar in Algiers, Algeria, on June 24 and 25, 2018, with support from the government of Algeria. This meeting brought together more than 70 experts and practitioners from thirteen countries in North, West, and Central Africa to discuss the prevention of violent extremism from a regional perspective. This followed similar conversations organized in N’Djamena in 2017 and Dakar in 2016 and a previous seminar in Tunis in 2015.

These conversations highlighted the complexity of violent extremism and the need to view prevention initiatives holistically and pragmatically, with a basis in research on concrete results.

On September 26th, IPI in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme, cohosted a conversation with H.E. Gbehzohngar M. Findley, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Liberia, Global Leader Series.

Following Minister Findley’s presentation, there will be a discussion moderated by IPI’s senior adviser for external relations, Warren Hoge, with Sweden’s Permanent Representative to the UN and Chair of the Liberia Configuration of the UN Peacebuilding Commission, H.E. Mr. Olof Skoog, and the Assistant Secretary General and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa of UNDP, Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa, on Liberia’s peacebuilding objectives and development priorities. The event will take place at IPI on Wednesday, September 26, 2018, from 8:15am to 9:45am.

Liberia’s presidential and legislative elections at the end of 2017 and the successful transfer of democratic power two months later marked a significant accomplishment in the country’s history. Following this peaceful transition and the end of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), Liberia now embarks on the next stage of its development trajectory. As part of this process, President Weah and the Liberian government are finalizing the country’s new development framework, the Pro-Poor Agenda for Prosperity and Development (PAPD). At this Global Leader Series event, Minister Findley will reflect on Liberia’s current opportunities and challenges while also addressing how best the international community can sustain and amplify its support to the country.

Secretary-General António Guterres launched the Action for Peacekeeping initiative (A4P) in March 2018 to galvanize member states to commit to peacekeeping and to translate statements of high-level political support into concrete actions. Since then, member states have signed a “Declaration of Shared Commitments on UN Peacekeeping Operations” in which they agree to adapt peacekeeping operations to meet contemporary challenges. But will this political consensus lead to actual change?

This issue brief assesses the political declaration across seven themes: political solutions, protection, safety and security, performance, partnerships, sustaining peace, and conduct of personnel. It argues that while some of member states’ commitments break new ground, many only reaffirm past agreements—and all require more concrete follow-up mechanisms. Ultimately, the success of the Action for Peacekeeping initiative depends on whether member states and the Secretariat honor their commitments and whether these commitments enable peace operations to help end conflicts and deliver sustainable peace.

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On Sunday, September 23, 2018, IPI held its thirteenth Ministerial Dinner on the Middle East in its Trygve Lie Center for Peace, Security, and Development. The working dinner drew the participation of foreign ministers, United Nations officials, special representatives of the Secretary-General to countries in the region, heads of humanitarian agencies, and other high-level representatives from the Middle East and North Africa, Europe, and beyond.

The event was chaired by Terje Rød-Larsen, President of IPI, and co-hosted by the United Arab Emirates and Luxembourg, represented respectively by Anwar Mohammed Gargash, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, and Jean Asselborn, Luxembourg’s Minister of Foreign and European Affairs.

In a roundtable conversation, conducted under the Chatham House rule of non-attribution, participants exchanged views on the changing landscape in the Arab world, including Yemen, Syria, Libya, Iraq, Israel, and the Palestinian territories, and the large displacement of people in the region. Central to the discussion was the possibility of establishing a multilateral mechanism for regional cooperation for the Middle East and North Africa in coordination with European and international stakeholders.

Attendees included the foreign ministers of Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Greece, Iraq, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Libya, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Spain; as well as Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul-Gheit, and Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Abdul Latif bin Rashid Al Zayani.

Also present were Ferid Belhaj, Vice President of the World Bank; Børge Brende, President of the World Economic Forum; Alistair Burt, United Kingdom Minister of State for the Middle East; Staffan de Mistura, Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Syria; Rosemary A. DiCarlo, UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs; Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship of Canada; Thorbjørn Jagland, Secretary-General of the Council of Europe; Pierre Krahenbuhl, Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA); Ján Kubiš, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Iraq and Head of UNAMI; Robert Malley, President and CEO of the International Crisis Group; Peter Maurer, President of the International Red Cross; David Miliband, President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee; Nickolay Mladenov, Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the UN Secretary-General to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian Authority; Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy; Amr Moussa, Former Secretary-General of the League of Arab States; and Kevin Rudd, Former Prime Minister of Australia and Chair of the IPI Board of Directors.

 

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Thursday, July 12, 1:15pm EST
Bringing Words to Life: How Are the SDGs Supporting Peace, Justice, and Inclusion?
This event focuses on early successes of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development—not only in regards to SDG 16 but across the agenda (SDG16+)—to foster peace, justice, and inclusion at the local and national level.

Watch Live Register to Attend

Monday, July 16, 1:15pm EST
Fostering Entrepreneurship & Innovation to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals
Taking place during the High-Level Political Forum, this event will discuss the role of entrepreneurship in realization of social and economic gains, and showcase success stories from entrepreneurs working on these issues.

Watch Live Register to Attend

Tuesday, July 17, 8:15am EST
Affordable Housing for All
This event examines ongoing and future government efforts to improve access to adequate housing, seeking to increase the awareness of UN member states of the challenges of housing from a more holistic perspective and their commitment to repositioning housing at the center of national development strategies.

Watch Live Register to Attend

Tuesday, July 17, 1:15pm EST
Reaching Internally Displaced Persons to Achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
In this event, participants will discuss the link between development policies and internal displacement by sharing tangible examples of actions that governments, civil society, and the international community are taking to help implement the SDGs by including IDPs.

Watch Live

Further Reading

Policy Reports and Issue Briefs:

• Advancing Sustainable Development between Conflict and Peace in Myanmar, by Mona Christophersen and Svein Erik Stave
• Pursuing Sustainable Development under Sectarianism in Lebanon, by Mona Christophersen
• A Greek Recipe for Overcoming Crises: Can the SDGs Be Used as Ingredients? by Jimena Leiva Roesch and Cheryl He
• Humanitarian Action and Sustaining Peace, by Alice Debarre
• Aligning Agendas: Drugs, Sustainable Development, and the Drive for Policy Coherence, by the International Expert Group on Drug Policy Metrics
• Toward a New Gambia: Linking Peace and Development, by Lesley Connolly and Cheryl He
• A New Way of Doing Business: Partnering for Sustainable Development and Peace, by Jimena Leiva Roesch, Stefanía Doebbel, and Masooma Rahmaty
• The SDGs and Prevention for Sustaining Peace: Exploring the Transformative Potential of the Goal on Gender Equality, by Delphine Mechoulan, Youssef Mahmoud, Andrea Ó Súilleabháin, and Jimena Leiva Roesch
• Entrepreneurship for Sustaining Peace, by Youssef Mahmoud, Anupah Makoond, and Ameya Naik

Global Observatory Articles:

• Development in Myanmar, Building Peace or Generating Conflict? by Mona Christophersen
• Sustainable Institutions Critical for Lebanon’s Sustainable Development, by Mona Christophersen
• Does Peace Always Produce Development? Guatemala Offers Some Clues, by Jimena Leiva Roesch and Mona Christophersen
• Is UN Goal 16 on Peace Being Misused to Justify Securitization? by Anna Möller-Loswick
• The Unaddressed Plight of Internally Displaced Persons, Alice Debarre
• The Gambia: An Ideal Case for Prevention in Practice, by Lesley Connolly

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On Friday, September 28th, IPI together with the Centre for Policy Research at United Nations University are cohosting a book launch event to discuss Negotiating Peace: A Guide to the Practice, Politics, and Law of International Mediation.

Remarks will begin at 4:45pm EST*

This book is the first and only practical guide to negotiating peace. In this ground-breaking book Sven Koopmans, who is both a peace negotiator and a scholar, discusses the practice, politics, and law of international mediation. With both depth and a light touch he explores successful as well as failed attempts to settle the wars of the world, building on decades of historical, political, and legal scholarship.

Who can mediate between warring parties? How to build confidence between enemies? Who should take part in negotiations? How can a single diplomat manage the major powers? What issues to discuss first, what last? When to set a deadline? How to maintain confidentiality? How to draft an agreement, and what should be in it? How to ensure implementation? The book discusses the practical difficulties and dilemmas of negotiating agreements, as well as existing solutions and possible future approaches. It uses examples from around the world, with an emphasis on the conflicts of the last twenty-five years, but also of the previous two-and-a-half-thousand. Rather than looking only at either legal, political or organizational issues, Negotiating Peace discusses these interrelated dimensions in the way they are confronted in practice as an integral whole with one leading question: what can be done?

Speakers:
H.E. Mr. Stef Blok, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of the Netherlands
Dr. Sven M.G. Koopmans, Author of Negotiating Peace and former Senior Mediation Expert, United Nations​
Mr. Terje Rød-Larsen, President, International Peace Institute
Ms. Teresa Whitfield, Director, Policy and Mediation Division, UN Department of Political Affairs
Mr. Robert Dann, Political Adviser and former Chief of the Mediation Support Unit

Moderator:
Mr. Adam Day, Head of Programmes, Centre for Policy Research at United Nations University

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On Friday, September 28th, IPI together with the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs of Switzerland are cohosting a policy forum during the UN High-Level Week to present the main conclusions and recommendations from the third Regional Conversations on “Investing in Peace and the Prevention of Violence in the Sahel-Sahara.” These conversations were organized in Algiers on June 24 and 25, 2018, by the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel, IPI, the FDFA of Switzerland, and the African Union’s African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT), with support from the government of Algeria.

Remarks will begin at 1:15pm EST*

Opening remarks:
H.E. Mr. Jürg Lauber, Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations
H.E. Mr. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General and Head of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS)

Speakers:
H.E. Ambassador El Haouès Riache, Ambassador and Counterterrorism Advisor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Algeria
H.E. Mr. Larry Gbevlo-Lartey, African Union Special Representative for Counterterrorism and Director of the African Union’s African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT)
Ms. Lori-Anne Théroux-Bénoni, Director, Dakar Office, Institute for Security Studies, Senegal
Mr. Mohamed Anacko, President of Agadez Regional Council, Niger
Ms. Omezzine Khélifa, Executive Director, Mobdiun, Tunisia

Moderator:
Dr. Youssef Mahmoud, Senior Adviser, International Peace Institute (IPI)

Following similar Conversations in Dakar in 2016 and N’Djamena in 2017, the Algiers gathering aimed to further identify and strengthen local, national, and regional approaches to preventing violent extremism and addressing its causes in the Sahel-Sahara. The focus was on the gap between the state and its citizens, engagement by civil society, the role of the media and security and defense forces, and the contribution of culture, citizenship, and education to prevention. Participants in the Algiers conversation called for a multidimensional approach to prevention that involves all stakeholders. They formulated recommendations on actions practitioners from the region could take, both within states and through regional and subregional groupings, and in some cases with support from the UN and other partners.

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On Thursday, September 27th, IPI together with the Government of Sweden are cohosting a Global Leader Series discussion with H.E. Margot Wallström, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden.

Remarks will begin at 2:45pm EST*

Despite two decades of policy development and commitments intended to support women and girls affected by armed conflict, women’s participation in all levels of peace and security decision-making lags due to structural barriers, lack of access to political arenas, and even threats to women who attempt to participate in these processes. In efforts to build and sustain peace, there remains a widespread neglect of local-level women peacebuilders’ expertise, and formal peacemaking efforts continue to be resistant to women’s meaningful participation and to women’s rights. This problem persists despite increasing recognition that efforts to build and sustain peace are dependent upon the full participation of women and respect for their rights. This Global Leaders discussion will draw on the minister’s years as an advocate for women’s rights, including in conflict zones, and will include her insights on how the international community can better live up to its obligations to women and girls globally.

H.E. Ms. Wallström has been the Foreign Minister of Sweden since 2014. She has had a long career in politics, which began in 1979 when she first served as a member of the Swedish Parliament. Her ministerial career began in 1988 when she was appointed Minister of Civil Affairs, responsible for consumer, women, and youth matters. She subsequently assumed the position of Minister of Culture, and then Minister of Social Affairs. In 1998, she retired from Swedish politics to become Executive Vice-President of Worldview Global Media, a non-governmental organization based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. From 1999 until 2004, she served as European Commissioner for the Environment. In 2004, when the Barroso Commission took office, she was appointed its first vice president responsible for inter-institutional relations and communication.

Ms.Wallström has been an advocate for the rights and needs of women throughout her political career, perhaps most notably as the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict from 2010 to 2012, and in her promotion of Sweden’s feminist foreign policy in her role as Foreign Minister. She is currently a member of the High-Level Panel on Humanitarian Financing, appointed by the UN Secretary-General in May 2015. She has received several honorary doctorates and awards for her work on sustainable development and climate change, and has also done extensive work to endorse a European Union-Africa partnership on renewable energy, and to champion equal opportunities. She was also co-founder of the European Union inter-institutional group of women and a key supporter of the 50-50 Campaign for Democracy by the European Women’s Lobby, where she worked to promote a more gender-balanced European Union.

This event will be moderated by Mr. Terje Rød-Larsen, President of IPI.

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On Thursday, September 27th, IPI together with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are cohosting the eleventh annual Trygve Lie Symposium on “Human Rights Defenders: A Global Movement for Peace.”

Remarks will begin at 8:15am EST*

Speakers at this event include Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Kingdom of Norway, H.E. Ms. Ine Eriksen Søreide, Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Tunisia, H.E. Mr. Khemaies Jhinaoui, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, H.E. Ms. Michelle Bachelet, as well as other distinguished speakers. This conversation will be moderated by the President of the International Peace Institute, Mr. Terje Rød-Larsen.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 20th anniversary of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. Throughout 2018, various events and activities around the globe are being held to highlight the importance of these declarations at an increasingly crucial time for human rights, including the “stand up for human rights” campaign being organized by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

According to OHCHR, the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders tells us that we all have a role to fulfill as human rights defenders and emphasizes that there is a global human rights movement that involves us all.In November of last year, Norway, along with 75 other countries, co-sponsored the Human Rights Defenders UN Consensus Resolution in consultation with civil society, which was unanimously adopted by the UN General Assembly. This resolution recognized “the substantial role that human rights defenders can play in supporting efforts to strengthen conflict prevention, peace and sustainable development, including…in the context of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.”

This year’s Trygve Lie Symposium will bring together high-level UN and government officials, experts, and civil society representatives to discuss and address how the international community can further promote the positive, important, legitimate, and necessary role of human rights defenders and how this work helps to create a world where sustainable peace is possible.

As we celebrate the anniversaries of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, presentations at this year’s Trygve Lie Symposium will reflect on the progress that has been made, new obstacles that those working to protect and defend human rights face, and the challenges that remain.

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